Scotland moves to ban multi-rig trawling

Wednesday, 18 August 2004 12:00 AM

The Scottish Fisheries Minister has announced plans to ban the use of multiple rig trawlers in Scottish waters.

Under new proposals, multiple trawling - where vessels fish with two or more nets - would be banned for all Scottish vessels and any vessel fishing within the Scottish 12-mile limit.

Scientists estimate that multi-rig trawling can increase fish catching capacity by between 50 and 80 per cent. Its use is rare in the UK fishing fleet but common in a number of European fishing fleets, notably those in Denmark.

Multi-net trawling in mixed fisheries increases the level of unwanted by-catch and as such has been a subject of severe criticism from conservationists.

The Scottish Executive has been under pressure to act on the issue from the influential Scottish fishermen's group the Scottish White Fish Producers' Association (SWFPA). In July they wrote to the Executive calling for the practice to be banned, claiming that it was creating "havoc" in the North Sea.

The SWFPA claimed that Danish vessels trawling for prawns were catching, and discarding, tonnes of immature haddock, making a mockery of conservation attempts.

Today, Fisheries Minister Ross Finnie said: "The increasing use of multiple trawls poses a threat to fish stocks and the measures we have worked hard to put in place to aid stock recovery. There is therefore a strong case for prohibiting all trawls of more than two nets in Scottish waters. Unfettered expansion of this fishery could increase fishing power to unsustainable levels.

"EU-wide action offers the most effective means of addressing the issue as many multi-rig vessels are from other countries. However, any such measures will take time to negotiate and implement. That is why I am consulting today on whether we should, as an interim measure, introduce our own restrictions."

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